Ben, one of my many wonderful nephews, decided to marry a fine Irish Girl by the name of Claire. Of course this was just the excuse we needed for the Irish trip we have been promising ourselves for decades!
Between us we had enough Aeroplan points for the trip. Having heard about the Irish weather we thought that a week of drizzle would be enough (After all, we leave home every fall to avoid this stuff!) so we should book a week somewhere warm or even hot, in order to dry out and toast our bones. The Algarve in Portugal sounded to about perfect!
We lined up Kate, our favourite dog and house sitter and off we went: Air Canada Victoria to Toronto then Toronto to Dublin, where we would arrive at 9:40 AM Irish time. While putting our carryon in the overhead rack on the aircraft at Toronto Art hear Gillian say in a surprised voice "Hi there!" Art turned around to see to his surprise, his niece Phoebe (the groom's sister) with her husband Gordon and baby son Maxwell whom we had never met before! They live in Montreal and were connecting through to Dublin. We managed a nice visit and Art and Maxwell got to know each other a bit.
We had made arrangements to meet Steve, another nephew flying in from Paris, at the Dublin Airport. We would stay at the same hotel in Dublin, tour the city that day then drive in the rental car to the tiny village of Letterfrack, in Connemara. Steve and his cousin had been close friends since childhood and had attended university together. As a surprise for Steve, they hung around at DUB for his flight from Paris to arrive. A great family reunion!
At the airport we picked up the Avis car and drove the 2 minutes to the hotel, had a much needed shower, changed, and met Steve back in the lobby. We took the city bus to Dublin city center then bought tickets on the Hop-On-Hop-Off tour bus. Needless to say we hopped off at the Guinness Storehouse! Here we spent several hours and took the opportunity to learn how to pour (and drink!) the Perfect Pint. We were successful and each earned a certificate to prove it.
Art discovered that his first and disappointing taste of Guinness many many years ago had not been the best. We would never have ordered one but we were in Dublin for heaven sake, birthplace of his Great Grandfather Patrick! Well as luck would have it, he loved it. It was not as he rememered at all. This could be the start of something!
From the Guinness Storehouse we hoped back on the tour bus back to the center of town and where we hoped to catch the bus back to the hotel. But first a bite to eat. Pizza and beer got the vote! We caught the right bus, but then as it pulled into the airport we discovered that it was the end of the line and our driver was off sift! The next bus would depart in half an hour or so! The hotel was the first stop on the bus route and only short walk but it was a bit convoluted for pedestrians so we called for the hotel's airport shuttle!
Back at the hotel the lobby bar was beckoning. We settled into a couple of comfortable chairs, nursed a couple of Irish Whiskys and headed for our much needed bed. We calculated that bu this time we had been awake for about 31 hours and it was time for bed! We told Steve we would call him when we woke, hopefully 8:30 or so.
We took a couple of melatonin tablets, which Art finds helpful to combat jet-lag, though Gillian not so much.
We slept relatively well, woke up at a good time and met Steve in the restaurant for breakfast. The buffet was very good, even the coffee!
We were soon on the road west. Our GPS guided us out of the city but the signage was very clear. Soon we were westbound on the freeway. This was a toll road with no toll booths! All vehicles had to have transponders. There were cameras to catch those without!. We had been told by Avis, that in order to pay the toll we could stop at any petrol station showing the emblem (which we had forgotten)! As we drove Steve searched his smart phone and paid the toll on line!
We stayed three days in the Rosleague Manor . . . . .
where many of the family stayed and in spite of on and off drizzle and some low cloud had a wonderful time. Perhaps the smoked salmon and scrambled eggs for breakfast helped. And of course the Guinness! Not to mention the view from our room (once the clouds lifted).
And the beautiful brass bed in our room.
The wedding was on Friday afternoon at a small local church . . . .
. . . .
the reception that evening in the lodge's beautiful dining room. The dinner was excellent;
then we adjourned to the lounge for dancing.
Traditional
And some not so traditional as we were entertained by the groom's younger brother's Break Dance display.
Saturday, the bride and groom decided to have another party in a pub in nearby Clifden! More Guinness!
Sunday was the bride's birthday so yet another party was planned but we had to move on, we only had a few more days. South in the rain to Tralee in County Kerry to find a B&B. Small room, up a flight of stairs but neat and clean and the place was quite well located. The breakfast was nothing to write home about, but we had been spoiled at the Manor!
We spent two nights at the B&B and one full day driving the Ring of Kerry and the Dingle Peninsula. Both were quite picturesque, but we agree that Dingle was a bit more scenic.
Back to Dublin, we dropped the car back at Avis and took their shuttle to the airport then from there the shuttle to the hotel to check in for the night.
A few photos to come-- they are on the other computer!
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